The only thing you need to know about the aims of feminist-trashing transactivism

Trans activism, in terms of getting protections in place for transgender people in the workplace, in terms of working to prevent and prosecute hate crimes against trans people, in terms of getting appropriate medical, social and legal services for transgender people–who are oppressed for their violations of gender norms in ways that elevate their rates of homelessness and poverty–is absolutely amazing work, and I salute people who are working in it. The kind of trans activism I’m going to be talking about is very specifically the kind confined to people whose time is spent in internet forums, chastising women for having discussions that are insufficiently inclusive.

I’m not going to talk about this issue much on this blog, except to say this:

The only thing you need to know about that kind of tumblr-style transactivism is that those same activists aren’t going into primarily men’s spaces and doing the textual equivalent of a disdainful throat clearing every time someone says “man up” or “grow a pair.” When men say “wow, he’s got big brass ones, don’t he?”, they’re not mobbed by several people saying that testes aren’t particularly manly, many women have testes and many men do not.

It’s abundantly clear that the strategy of these trans activists involves criticism that is confined to women, nearly exclusively. Women aren’t the ones who are committing violent acts against trans people. Perhaps men’s language and idioms and issues need trans activism a whole lot more than people who are already fundamentally sympathetic to the cause of ending all gender based oppression.

34 thoughts on “The only thing you need to know about the aims of feminist-trashing transactivism”

Where are all the transmen having workshops on how to convince gay men that vaginas are male and they should give it a try or else they’re bigots? We don’t see that because that attitude is pure entitlement born of being raised thinking the world owes us something.

Sexuality is the one place where genitals are legitimately an organizing interest. It might be useful to create new words for people who are attracted to people of particular genders as distinct from people that are attracted to people with particular genital configurations. However, the latter is not illegitimate and attempting to shame people who are attracted to particular genital configurations is mostly Nice Guy-style crap.

As a gay trans man, I am actively working to save money to get rid of that v-word. I’m in a long term relationship with a bi cis man. When we hook up, I do exactly what I did with the gay guy I dated before him: keep that part covered up with a realistic looking strap on, and then top him with it. I hate that part on me so much I don’t even like to look at it much less touch it, and I would never want a partner near it. I’m sure many dysphoric trans women, particularly lesbian trans women, feel the same way about their junk.

This trans woman certainly does, and so does my wonderful trans man husband, which has exactly the effect on our romantic life (though thankfully not on our emotional life) as you suggest it would. The correction of our mutual issue cannot come soon enough.

Still, I could accept that some people might join any “movement” for perceived benefits and use it to promote distorting messages, and the Cotton Ceiling trope is certainly twisted: however one looks at it, it undermines the principle of consent. Whoever came up with that trope did not so much hand the anti-trans activists ammunition as an atom bomb…

A female attracted to a masculine presenting female is still homosexual (or bisexual if you also don’t mind penises). If you are a female with a vagina and you are attracted to a female with a vagina, your behavior is homosexual. It doesn’t matter if one of you thinks they’re male. Homosexuality is inherent, meaning that a preference for certain genitalia it hardwired in the brain. Sorry about that.

Very refreshing to read a post that is careful to make that distinction between genuine activism and “tumblr activism”. Bearing in mind it is not difficult to think of a thousand more productive ways of fighting for social justice than anonymously flinging metaphorical bile at complete strangers over the airwaves, no-one should really be leaping to the defence of anyone whose activism consists solely or chiefly of the latter (or possibly even who has any time for the latter at all). As in most walks of life, those who shout the loudest tend to have the least to actually say.

Bingo. Trans people advocating for non-discrimination policies, creating trans domestic violence shelters, working toward an end to the massive violence against trans people in South America, and so on are doing incredible work. They really are. That’s why the emphasis on pronouns and language and taking down feminism is so clearly NOT real activism!

Very much so, though I do believe it is necessary to acknowledge that violence happens closer to home as well. Local incidents are thankfully decreasing, though the most recent case unfortunately (and ironically) happened to a trans person in the very street where one of our support groups is held. I don’t doubt that there will always be a need for local as well as national activism, but it is better for all concerned that it is focused where it can make the most positive impact.

Having said that, in such cases where violence is contingent upon facilities (such as public restroom access, though this was not a related case) I do believe the most realistic solution is a move towards a greater rather than a lesser segregation of facilities. That may sound regressive, but I think it would be a boon towards agender and gender-neutral people as well.

You know, I used to give more of a crap about that. And it’s not that I don’t agree that everyone should be free from violence and discrimination in the things that really matter. But this group has basically lost me to the point where I just no longer care about them and their alleged rights. There are a lot of us FORMER allies around. I’ve come to realize that a lot of those violence statistics are just inflated numbers. People who aren’t trans in life trans in death, domestic violence at the hands of violent male partners is their number one killer. And if they suicide as easily as they claim, wouldn’t there be a lot fewer of them? People whose activism revolves around taking away safe-space for women, defining and censoring women, and insisting that lesbian women fuck them, don’t score too high on my list of worthy causes. And throwing down the gauntlet because s/o refuses to indulge your delusion and use your preferred pronoun simply screams of narcissistic, attention-seeking drama queen. Real women deal with real threats and violence, discrimination and harassment EVERYDAY. Just try to have a rational conversation with people who loudly proclaim they would happily kill you. Just try to ask questions and raise points. You will be hounded, blacklisted and doxxed, threatened with rape and death. You will be no-platormed and ostracized. So fuck trans and all thing trans.